Humanities

Introduction

Sandra F. Connelly M.Ed.
Humanities Curriculum Coordinator, K-12
English Language Arts, Social Studies, Reading and Library Science 
 
Elementary Language Arts
Elementary Language Arts are taught through a balanced approach which includes instruction  in reading, writing, working with words and application of what was taught through independent, self-selected reading.  Students are encouraged to read each night, to build fluency and to foster a love for reading.  Students are taught decoding and comprehension strategies to preview, predict, make inferences and connections and then to summarize, question and evaluate text. Students read a balance of nonfiction and fiction as well as poems, plays and speeches. 
 

Elementary Social Studies 
Elementary Social Studies explores topics that help our students learn about their world and their relationship to the world and others.  
 
English Literature and History
English Literature and History instruction in the secondary schools builds on the comprehension strategies taught in prior grades while increasing the academic challenge of the text.  These include rigorous and engaging literature selections as well as primary and secondary source documents.  Students are taught how to interact with text, synthesize and evaluate what they have read and to develop an argument with substantive evidence.  Through collaborative discussions and seminars, students develop skills to be ready for college and beyond.    
 
Humanities Curriculum Office 
The School District of Haverford Township
610-853-5900 x7212 (office)

Elementary ELA

Kindergarten

Kindergarten Units of Instruction
Unit Metacognitive Strategy Text Dependent Comprehension Strategies
1 Ask questions Identify main idea and supporting details
2 Visualize Analyze character
3 Determine text importance Identify sequence of events
4 Summarize & Synthesize Analyze story elements
5 Make connections Make inferences
6 Fix-up monitoring Summarize information
7 Make inferences Make predictions
8 Determine text importance Compare & contrast
9 Make connections Identify cause & effect
10 Make inferences Draw conclusions

Grade 1

Grade 1 Units of Instruction
Unit Metacognitive Strategy Text Dependent Comprehension Strategies
1 Ask questions Identify main idea and supporting details
2 Visualize Analyze character
3 Determine text importance Identify sequence of events
4 Summarize & Synthesize Analyze story elements
5 Make connections Make inferences
6 Fix-up monitoring Summarize information
7 Make inferences Make predictions
8 Determine text importance Compare & contrast
9 Make connections Identify cause & effect
10 Make inferences Draw conclusions

Grade 2

Grade 2 Units of Instruction
Unit Metacognitive Strategy Text Dependent Comprehension Strategies
1 Ask questions Identify main idea and supporting details
2 Visualize Analyze character
3 Determine text importance Identify sequence of events
4 Summarize & Synthesize Analyze story elements
5 Make connections Make inferences
6 Fix-up monitoring Summarize information
7 Make inferences Make predictions
8 Determine text importance Compare & contrast
9 Make connections Identify cause & effect
10 Make inferences Draw conclusions

Grade 3

Grade 3 Units of Instruction
Unit Metacognitive Strategy Text Dependent Comprehension Strategies
1 Ask questions Identify main idea and supporting details
2 Visualize Analyze character
3 Determine text importance Identify sequence of events
4 Summarize & Synthesize Analyze story elements
5 Make connections Make inferences
6 Fix-up monitoring Distinguish, Evaluate Fact & Opinion
7 Make inferences Make predictions
8 Determine text importance Compare & contrast
9 Make connections Identify cause & effect
10 Make inferences Draw conclusions

Grade 4

Grade 4 Units of Instruction
Unit Metacognitive Strategy Text Dependent Comprehension Strategies
1 Ask questions Identify main idea and supporting details
2 Determine text importance Identify sequence of events
3 Visualize Make inferences
4 Fix-up monitoring Summarize information
5 Determine text importance Compare & contrast
6 Make connections Identify cause & effect
7 Make inferences Draw conclusions
8 Summarize & Synthesize Evaluate Author's Purpose
9 Make connections Distinguish, Evaluate Fact & Opinion
10 Ask questions Make judgments

Grade 5

Grade 5 Units of Instruction
Unit Metacognitive Strategy Text Dependent Comprehension Strategies
1 Ask questions Identify main idea and supporting details
2 Determine text importance Identify sequence of events
3 Visualize Make inferences
4 Fix-up monitoring Summarize information
5 Determine text importance Compare & contrast
6 Make connections Identify cause & effect
7 Make inferences Draw conclusions
8 Summarize & Synthesize Evaluate Author's Purpose
9 Make connections Distinguish, Evaluate Fact & Opinion
10 Ask questions Make judgments

Secondary ELA

English Literature and History instruction in the secondary schools builds on the comprehension strategies taught in prior grades while increasing the academic challenge of the text.  These include rigorous and engaging literature selections as well as primary and secondary source documents.  Students are taught how to interact with text, synthesize and evaluate what they have read and to develop an argument with substantive evidence. Through collaborative discussions and seminars, students develop skills to be ready for college and beyond.

Elementary Social Studies

Elementary Social Studies explores topics that help our students learn about their world and their relationship to the world and others.